Friday, August 20, 2010

~ Past Holiday Experiences 9 - Taiwan Oct-Nov 2005 (Day 6) ~

1st Nov - Day 6: Our intention is to go to Wufenpu but since it is only open around noon time, we are quite free in the morning. Not really sure where to go (since it is not pre-planned), we took a cab up to visit a tea farm. Here, we get to sample some tea and the locals are very warm. If you like, you can also buy some packets of tea leaves back too.

The cab driver who drove us down recommended a very nice dining place selling delicious 卤肉饭。Although it is a small shop but there are a lot of customers. Hubby and I enjoyed the food very much. Too bad I didn't take down some pictures then.

After having out stomach filled, we walked to Wufenpu (五分埔) which is a wholesale garment center and one of the largest clothing markets in Taipei. The stalls offer all kinds of fashionable clothing for men, ladies and children at a cheaper price. It is indeed a shopping heaven! Since there are so many stalls, the area can be pretty hot to shop around in the afternoon. Probably the best time to visit is after 4pm to evening when the sun is not so scorching.

In the evening, we went down to Taipei 101 which is a prominent landmark skyscraper in Xinyi District, Taipei. It was the world's tallest building since 2004 (when we visited then) but now being surpassed by Burj Khalifa in Dubai since it's opening in 2010.

Nevertheless, Taipei 101 is still an icon of Taiwan and there will be fireworks launching from the building on New Year's Eve. :)

Taipei 101 has the two fastest elevators in the world, with aerodynamic pressure controlled cabs, ascending at 1010 m/minute. We bought the tickets at the counter located on the 5th floor, joins the queue and waited to take the elevator.

Upon entering the lift, the lights will slowly dims off to total darkness. There is music and pretty lights surrounding the lift but you should focus on the display panel on the right which shows you the speed and how fast the elevator is ascending/descending. Within 37 seconds, we reached the 89th floor observatory from where we start off at storey 5. Amazing!

From the top, you can have a 360 degree view of Taipei. Since it is night time, we saw pretty lighting surrounding the city. Although we did not get to go to the outdoor observatory, the scene is just as gorgeous!

Within Taipei 101, there is also a shopping mall with many high-end shops/boutiques carrying the top brands. Naturally, we only window shop around and didn't dare to enter any of these shops since we are within the expensive spending zone belt. Hahaha. :)